The challenges of integrating scientific literacy into the functional literacy programme in Nigeria

The basic understanding of science that should be possessed by everyone not only professionals in science is called scientific literacy. This paper focuses on the need to integrate scientific literacy into the functional literacy programme in Nigeria. Ability to read and write alone without scientific literacy will make learners to be victims of superstition and taboos. Learners who are scientific illiterate are also likely to be confused by events happening around them and also unable to make some informed decisions about some issues in their daily lives. It is argued that a person is not completely literate until scientifically literate. Nigeria should borrow a leaf from the United States of America who despite high level of scientific literacy are still projecting into the future not only to make their citizens to be able to read and write alone but to be scientifically literate. There is therefore the need to project into the future and work out plans to make Nigerian citizens scientifically literate. In order to realise these plans, there are basic issues and challenges that should be tackled. These are funding, curriculum design and implementation, language barriers and means of communication, exceptional children participation, gender, rural and urban factors and monitoring and evaluation of programme impact. Keywords: scientific literacy, functional funding, curriculum design, curriculum implementation, language barriers